


Secrets

by RewriteThisStory



Category: Newsies (1992)
Genre: Gen, M/M, written for David-Jacobs-Would’s newsiesstocking wish list 2014
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-10
Updated: 2016-01-10
Packaged: 2018-05-12 22:34:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 923
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5683468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RewriteThisStory/pseuds/RewriteThisStory
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for David-Jacobs-Would’s newsiesstocking wish list.  (They wanted a story about Jack and David trading secrets- and Jack claiming that David needs to tell him five or six secrets to get one of his…)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Secrets

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted to Tumblr- Oct 2014

One evening, David and Jack lay on the rooftop after dinner. One of David’s homework assignments was to find certain constellations that they had discussed in class. Jack had followed, having nothing better to do. Unless losing money at cards counted as something better. 

As they lay there, David pointed out the constellations to Jack- among them the 3 stars of Orion’s belt and the W shape of Cassiopeia, telling Jack the stories of the hunter and the vain queen. 

After a while though, they watched the stars without speaking, each lost in their own thoughts. 

“Hey Jack,” David began, breaking the comfortable silence that had fallen. “Tell me something about yourself that I don’t know- something you’ve never told anyone.” 

Jack rolled his head over to look at David, grinning, “Don’t think I can do that, Dave. If I tell you, then I’ll have told someone. It’s one of them paradoxes you was tellin’ me about last week.” 

David rolled his eyes. “Come on, Jack. One thing- you never tell me anything about yourself.” 

Jack barked a laugh, “Because you tell me so much about yourself.” Jack paused, considering, “Tell you what, you go first- tell me something about you- and it’s gotta be good.”

David shrugged, “Fine. I got a F in gym once.” 

Jack shook his head, “Nope. Les told me- and it was more than once.” Jack poked him in the side, “Who’s improvin’ the truth now, Dave? Guess you did learn from the best.” 

David thought a moment, “I had this stuffed kangaroo I carried everywhere when I was a kid. Sarah made it- but it looked more like a dinosaur really.” He laughed, “She doesn’t like it when I tell people that.” 

“Yeah, she told me that too. Try again.” 

“I hate tomatoes,” David offered.

“I’ve eaten lunch and dinner with you enough to know that already.” 

David tried again, “I didn’t want to go back to sch-” 

Jack cut him off, “I’m pretty sure EVERYONE knows that, David. An’ I know about the time when you was three and you took your clothes off and ran around the Park naked- so don’t try that one, neither.”

David’s face turned to shocked outrage, “I never did that!” he protested. He was thankful it was dark and Jack couldn’t see how red his face had become.

“That’s not what Sarah says- or your mother.” Jack grinned. 

“I might just kill her for that,” David muttered. He shook his head and sighed. This was harder than he thought. Made even harder by the fact his family seemed to have told Jack his life story already- or at least the mortifying parts. “Look, you obviously know plenty about me, so tell me yours.” 

“Come on, Dave- I like learnin’ about you. Learnin’ all the little things- like how you roll your eyes anytime we call you Mouth or how you get quiet for a moment when you’re thinkin’- before all your words tumble out and convince everyone you’re right. But you never tell me nothin’ about yourself. I hear it all from Sarah or Les.” 

David sighed. Jack wasn’t wrong. “Fine.” He thought a moment, searching for a story that wasn’t going to make him want to sink into a hole and hide by telling it. “The pocket watch I carry around? It was my grandfather’s. When I was little I’d take it and pretend to be him, or a gentleman or whatever. When I was eight I broke it. He was so mad… it was the nicest thing he had.” David paused, “When he died, he left it to me- he’d gotten it fixed and never told me. But he wanted me to have something to remember him by- and to remind me to be careful with other people’s things.“ David shrugged. “And my own I guess,” he added after a moment.

Jack was quiet for a few moments, lost in thought. David realized that Jack probably never knew his own grandparents, nor had they ever given him anything. David felt suddenly guilty, even though he knew it was silly to feel that way.

“So,” David nudged Jack with his shoulder trying to break his friend’s reverie, “Your turn. Something true- and not improved,” David clarified. 

Jack shifted uncomfortably. “What sort of thing you wanna know?” 

David thought for a moment, “Something about your family maybe? Your mom I guess.” 

Jack was quiet for a bit, “I don’t remember her much,” he began softly. David waited. 

“Ok, that’s not exactly it. I guess I don’t think about her much- so you forget you know?” Jack toyed with the bottom of his vest. He cleared his throat, “She used to take me to the Park. Said she wanted me to see trees an’ grass- get some fresh air.” He took a breath that came out a little like a sigh, “She used to talk about Ireland- not that she really remembered it- but what her father told her. How green it was- Kelly green she called it,” he gave a small laugh. “The color of luck, she’d say,” he shrugged. “Guess that’s why it came to mind… I needed some luck back then.” 

It was David’s turn to sit in quiet reflection. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but he hadn’t expected that. “Well, maybe it worked, I mean, you’re the best newsie around, right? And, I know I’m lucky to have met you- and all the other guys,” David finished quickly. 

“Yeah, guess my luck did change,” Jack agreed.


End file.
